Fjallsárlón – Overnight Adventure, Iceland
My name is Steinþór Arnarson and I am the general manager at Fjallsárlón. I am an Icelander that grew up in the area. I studied law and worked as a lawyer for a couple of years. I soon realized that my roots to Öræfasveit were pulling me and from there the idea of starting a tour operator company at Fjallsárlón lagoon came to light.
Fjallsárlón is a privately owned company that was founded in 2013. We are located by Fjallsárlón lagoon in Vatnajökull national park, Iceland. We started out small selling tours from the back of a trailer, offering zodiac boat tours among floating icebergs. Our operation has grown steadily over the years. We opened a bistro style restaurant and reception for boat tours on-site in 2017. We have since them added more variety toour tour choices such as our private tours and luxury tours and our newest addition the Aurora Huts. We are always looking for ways to broaden our services and keep all-year round operations going.
How long have you been AuroraHut partner?
It is now about a year since we joined the AuroraHut team. Originally, we bought two huts, but now we have three. Starting a new operation in Iceland that has never been done before has had a few challenges. We have had a lot of support from the Aurora Hut team helping us get things going. We can without a doubt say that the customer service and level of support has well exceeded our expectations.
What has been the best thing about AuroraHut?
We got very excited when we found out about the AuroraHut. We are located in the middle of a National Park so great care has to be taken into consideration when operating any kind of activity in the area. Being an eco-friendly product had a big impact when making the decision of buying the AuroraHuts. As the huts float on water or sit on the frozen lagoon it has minimal effect on the environment. We consider the AuroraHut to be the jewel in our crown, enabling us to offer our guests an overnight adventure in unspoiled nature with magnificent views towards the glacier. We can honestly say that the AuroraHuts seemed to be made for Fjallsárlón.
What kind of feedback have you received from the customers?
The feedback and reviews have been truly amazing with rating at 9,7 out of 10. With guests saying; it is an incredible location and experience. The hut is just wonderful, everything was perfect! It is a once-in-a-lifetime experience; it is a bucket list experience. Here you will find two reviews written by our guests to sum it up. 1. “Absolutely incredible experience- our AuroraHut / Glacier Lagoon Igloo was wonderful, we had stunning views of the glacier, and the whole lagoon to ourselves overnight. The hut is very compact but extremely comfortable, and a real once in a lifetime experience!” 2. “This was one of the coolest experiences ever. The pods are like little, 2 persons, tent sized house boats floating in an iceberg filled glacier lagoon. The pod is small but still finds space for a bathroom and kitchenette somehow. It was well stocked with water, coffee, and tea. It was so awesome sleeping under the stars, and we could even hear new icebergs being born in the middle of the night as they separated off the main glacier. The guides were so friendly and gave us an amazing personal boat tour before dropping us off. It was a once in a lifetime experience that I would recommend to anyone going to southeast Iceland!”
Why would you recommend AuroraHut?
I would recommend the AuroraHut to those who are starting a business and want to avoid the huge cost of building an accommodation. Also if people are looking to broaden the services on offer the AuroraHut is a fantastic option. Nowadays people are looking for a way to travel without impacting the environment, the eco-friendly, sustainable approach is extremely popular as well as people are looking to avoid the mass tourism and experience something unique, the AuroraHut offers all that. Working with the AuroraHut team has been incredible, the customer service is fast and efficient with great personal service.
What would you hope to get in the future from the collaboration with AuroraHut and what kind of new products or innovations would you like to have to support your business?
We really like the design and the attention to details that the Aurora Hut has to offer. If anything, we would like to see if there is a way to make the restroom area a bit more private, switch out the curtain for a door, like the ones you find on airplanes.
We look forward to a long-time partnership with the company and are excited to see what new products you will offer in the future.